The Federal Government’s Presidential Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Initiative is challenged due to inadequate infrastructure, nearly two years after its launch, according to Mike Osatuyi, former national secretary of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN).
This was made known during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Lagos.
Osatuyi expressed disappointment that nearly two years after its launch, the CNG programme has yet to take off meaningfully.
Osatuyi expressed concerns over persistent queues at CNG stations in Lagos and Abuja, warning that poor implementation risks undermining the initiative’s potential benefits.
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While commending President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s initial push for CNG as an alternative fuel, Osatuyi lamented that Nigeria could have slashed petrol consumption by 50 percent had such measures been implemented two decades earlier. He highlighted CNG’s advantages, including cost efficiency, environmental benefits, and enhanced safety.
Despite the appointment of a minister of gas and the creation of the Presidential Initiative on CNG (Pi-CNG), chaired by FIRS boss Zacch Adelabu Adedeji, Osatuyi noted critical gaps in infrastructure.
He said that plans to deploy 200,000 CNG-powered buses and tricycles nationwide are being hampered by a lack of conversion centres and refuelling stations.
“The budget allocated for CNG is insufficient to match the growing demand, even as Nigerians grapple with high conversion costs,” he stated.
Osatuyi criticised the Pi-CNG Committee for inadequate stakeholder engagement, urging broader consultations with oil and gas players.
He also likened the current CNG station queues to past fuel scarcity crises, citing prolonged wait times at key locations like Zuba-Kubwa Road, Abuja Airport Road, and Ibadan Tollgate.
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“The initiative’s poor execution has turned it into a national embarrassment,” he said, calling for urgent government intervention.
A vocal proponent of deregulation, Osatuyi urged Nigeria to adopt global best practices, suggesting that existing IPMAN stations be retrofitted to dispense CNG alongside petrol and diesel—a cost-effective strategy employed by leading CNG markets like China and India.
